South-west economic integration will save it from marginalization

Former Governor of Lagos State and Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has called on the South-west to consider regional integration, saying only such a move could save the region from marginalisation.

Speaking at the 2011 Ojude Oba festival in Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, Tinubu said the people of the region should not waste the opportunities the crop of ACN governments in the region offered to aim at economic integration and economically develop the region.

He said that would return the region to “the Obafemi Awolowo golden era in the First Republic, when the old West was the clear pacesetter.”
He said: “We are ready to embark on regional integration and development. And the Yoruba now have five governors in place to deliver on regional integration that will economically empower our people and deliver prosperity.”

He told the crowd that the era of deceitful politics was over, adding that the ruling ACN in the region had ushered in a new era.

Extolling the culture and tradition of the Ijebu, Tinubu said the Ojude Oba festival was a fitting testimony to religious tolerance among the Ijebu, noting though it had an Islamic bent, every Ijebu son and daughter treated the festival as a yearly home-coming.

He said the festival was a clear determination by the Ijebu to develop themselves by themselves, adding that the rest of the country ought to learn from that philosophy of self-determination.

He commended the qualities of the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, whom he said had always displayed uncommon courage and exemplary leadership, even during military rule.

“Your kind of leadership is rare. It is only a traditional ruler like you that can gather this kind of crowd,” he said.

He urged others to follow the steps of the Awujale. “Just as we have great rulers that we can trust, we must be wary of rulers who only care about themselves alone,” he warned.